Societal Expectations vs. Self-Fulfillment Theme Analysis

Miss Marsalles’s life in “Dance of the Happy Shades” is clearly deteriorating, and her surrounding society expects her to act in certain ways that reflect this. The elderly music teacher and her older sister are aging, and their social prospects, finances, and health are in decline. The Marsalles sisters have moved into a smaller house, and the older sister has recently suffered a stroke, leaving her bedridden and unable to speak. Over the years, the quality of the parties Miss Marsalles hosts has also taken a turn for the worse. Fewer students attend, and the annual social events become increasingly awkward and unpleasant for the guests. The narrator’s mother pities Miss Marsalles but also seems to consider the deterioration of her life appropriate for a woman of her position—it’s implied that the narrator’s mother thinks Miss Marsalles’s misfortunes are sad but that they aren’t surprising, considering that Miss Marsalles is an old, childless spinster. With this in mind, the narrator’s mother thinks Miss Marsalles should act accordingly—for example, Miss Marsalles shouldn’t have parties anymore because she’s elderly and impoverished. In other words, the narrator’s mother believes Miss Marsalles should accept her deteriorating circumstances.

However, Miss Marsalles doesn’t submit to the deterioration of her life as a tragic inevitability. She continues to teach piano lessons because she believes music is good for everyone, and she keeps throwing parties because she loves socializing. She decorates her house and dresses herself in the same out-of-date styles, and she carries on the same traditions, such as gift-giving at her recitals, even when she may not have the financial means to sustain them. Miss Marsalles’s consistency is so thorough that her former music students, now middle-aged women with their own children, find it incredible and “wholly unrealistic.” To these women, including the narrator’s mother, Miss Marsalles’s stubborn commitment to the usual routine—the one she established years ago—is inappropriate, pathetic, and embarrassing. In their minds, Miss Marsalles should be miserable, and they should pity her.

Yet Miss Marsalles’s persistence makes her happy, and her joy itself persists despite her deteriorating circumstances. She draws strength from her unrelenting confidence in goodness and gains satisfaction from continuing to do what brings her joy. In doing so, she contradicts what society expects of her. Miss Marsalles’s persistence is not a weakness, nor does it make her pathetic or inferior to the women who look down on her. Through Miss Marsalles, “Dance of the Happy Shades” suggests that firmly following one’s own personal fulfillment regardless of stifling societal expectations is a great personal strength and yields more happiness than conforming to narrow social conventions.